Ressources in Dombes Côtière
The Dombes plateau, with an area of 47,656 ha, is remarkable for the multitude of ponds that compose it and the many birds they shelter during migration. Since 2006, the Dombes is classified as a Natura 2000 zone.
A Natura 2000 classification to preserve a sensitive area |
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"The Natura 2000 network is a collection of European natural sites, terrestrial and marine, identified for the rarity or fragility of wild, animal or plant species and their habitats. Natura 2000 reconciles nature conservation and socio-economic concerns. |
In France, the Natura 2000 network includes 1,758 sites (site of the Ministry of Ecology, Sustainable Development and Energy .) La Dombes was classified as a Natura 2000 zone by the Decree of 12 April 2006. |
The Dombes, plateau with a thousand ponds |
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| The ponds that make the Dombes so famous were created artificially, as early as the 13th century. Today, there are about 1,100 of them, spread over 67 communes of the department of Ain. These ponds are fed by runoff and rainfall. | A system of ponds, whose operation depends on the agreement of all the owners, has established over time to complete their filling. The traditional exploitation of the Dombes ponds is one of its originalities: it alternates two phases: the evolution (pitching phase of the ponds) and the assec (with in general putting in culture). |
A major bird reception area |
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| La Dombes is one of the most important wetlands in France. It is listed as an Important Bird Area (IBA). 3 criteria make the Dombes a wetland favorable to waterbirds of international importance: the diversity of the species of community interest that occur there, the size of the population of these species and the size of the migrating and wintering waterbirds. |
There are, for example, on the site the Black-necked Grebe, Black-crowned Night Heron, Scalloped Crab, Garzette Egret, Dwarf Blongios, Purple Heron, White Stork, Mustack Tassel, Reed Harrier and Stilt white. The Dombes is also home to large populations of migratory birds, mostly anatidae.. |